(UPDATED) The New City Commercial Center (NCCC) Mall in Maa, Davao City is still engulfed in flames as of 7 p.m., Saturday, December 23.
A photo posted on SunStar Davao's Facebook account by photojournalist Mark Perandos showed the mall is still raging in flames, almost 10 hours since the fire alarm was reported at 9:30 a.m.
The Bureau of Fire Protection said the blaze started at the 3rd floor of the building.
As of 3:46 p.m., firefighters were still putting off the fire.
S&R, a membership shopping establishment beside NCCC, sent its staff to give out fire fighters, volunteers and the rest of the rescue team free pizza.
Here is a video taken earlier:
Rescuers tried to rescue some employees of SSI, a BPO company who were trapped at the fourth floor of the mall.
The mall management in a statement said it is still verifying the extent of the incident and coordinating with authorities. It also added there are no reported casualties.
"It is unfortunate that we confirm that there was a fire at the 3rd floor of NCCC Mall Department Store. The BFP has the situation under control and we are still verifying the extent of the incident. We are currently coordinating with the authorities. However, there are no reported casualties," the statement reads.
The mall was temporarily closed and mall-goers and employees were evacuated.
NCCC Mall of Davao earlier announced renovation plans in 2018 including the expansion of a bigger and wider mixed-use development of its area.
The homegrown mall was established 2003. (Juliet Revita/SunStar Davao)
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